Derek di Grazia’s courses are known for being challenging but fair and safe. (Mike McNally Photo) Derek di Grazia knows what it’s like to ride—and win—the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event presented by Land Rover: he won it in 1985 on Sasquatch, a Thoroughbred/Appaloosa cross. These days, as the Rolex Kentucky event’s cross-country course designer, di Grazia is the man asking the questions of the four-star horses and riders galloping over the Kentucky Horse...

Nick Novak and Climbus win the $25,000 Welcome Stake at the Great Lakes Equestrian Festival Week IV. (Kendall Bierer/Phelps Media Group) Traverse City, Mich. - Nick Novak finally overcame his five-year drought on Friday afternoon at the Great Lakes Equestrian Festival (GLEF). For years, he has fallen just shy of the victory, taking the backseat to the winner's circle. During Week IV of GLEF, the drought came to an end for Novak, and as the old saying goes, "when it rains, it pours." Novak...

McLain Ward and Rothchild on their way to an AIG $1 Million Grand Prix win. (ESI Photography) Thermal, Calif. - Two-time Olympic gold medalist, McLain Ward, and Sagamore Farms’ Rothchild, rose to challenge a top-notch field of thirty-three riders, including Ocala’s 2015 Great American Million winner Charlie Jayne, to claim a prestigious victory by going double-clear on a challenging course in the first Jewel in the HITS Triple Crown of Show Jumping, the AIG $1 Million Grand Prix....

Wellington, Fla. - The Palm Beach International Equestrian Center's International Arena hosted some of the world's top youth athletes as CSIO Wellington continued with FEI Nations Cup competition for Young Riders, Juniors, and Children. The future stars of the sport were tested over the Steve Stephens-designed courses with round one for the three divisions taking place in the afternoon, immediately followed by the second rounds under the lights. The U.S. teams proved their mettle as the...

Kelley Farmer and Mindful on their way to a $100,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby win. (ESI Photography) Ocala, Fla. - The second $100,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby of the HITS Hunter Derby Tour paid a visit to HITS Post Time Farm in Ocala, Florida, on Saturday during Week VI of the Ocala Winter Circuit. As the sun set, and the lights of Ocala Horse Properties Stadium flickered to life, the crowd watched in anticipation to witness who could master the course with finesse and the...

Wayne, Ill. – Today, 29 combinations kicked off the 2015 U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions presented by The Dutta Corp. at the Lamplight Equestrian Center with three tests: the FEI Young Rider Team Test, the FEI Junior Team Test, and the FEI Grand Prix 16-25 Test. FEI Young Rider Team Test It has been five years since Kerrigan Gluch (Wellington, Fla.) performed in a competition at Lamplight Equestrian Center when she appeared in the USEF Dressage Seat Medal Finals as a 13-year-old. She...

Molly Sewell and EL Raymond (Phelps Media Group) Lexington, KY - July 26, 2015 - When it comes to winning the $5,000 USHJA National Hunter Derby at the Kentucky Summer Horse Show, Molly Sewell and EL Raymond are two-for-two. The pair won the class last year at the Kentucky Horse Park, and they returned on Sunday to do it again this year. "He never lets me down. I think we've been in the top four of every derby that we've ever done - usually winning because that's what Raymond does,"...

Alison Wichman and Kix Littlestown, PA - June 21, 2015 - Alison Wichman has ridden a lot of great horses in her 62 years, but she says her 'Sunday horse' Kix is one of the best. The fiery Selle Francais gelding has an uncanny knack for sensing when it is time to step up to the plate for the Sunday jumper classics, and he did it again on Sunday morning at the Swan Lake Summer Kick-Off Classic, taking the victory in the $3,500 NAL/WIHS/M&S Adult Classic. "He seems to have a sense that...

Kelley Farmer and Dalliance Mumford, NY - June 7, 2015 - With just one horse left to return in the handy round of the $35,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby at the Genesee Country Village & Museum, Amanda Steege and Jennifer Alfano waited on standby prepared to jump-off for the win. The two riders sat tied at the top of the class, with the outcome all up to the final pair: Kelley Farmer and Dalliance. But as Farmer and Dalliance cleared the final fence on Sunday afternoon, it quickly...

Gladstone, N.J. – The final day of the George H. Morris Gladstone Program came to a conclusion today at the USET Foundation Headquarters at Hamilton Farms. Legendary horseman, George Morris, pushed the 10 riders to their fullest potential in the flat and gymnastics phases, being as forward as the seat he advocates. The riders were tested through training in classical dressage, as well as over a full course featuring a water jump, liverpool, airy verticals, and a dodgy triple combination....